Sunday, October 5, 2014

Dogville

In the film Dogville by Lars von Trier, there are quite a few fascinating cinematic and directing choices that were very brave of the creators and makes the movie as memorable as it is. Most notably, the choice for a minimal stage-like set, because that had never been done before in a film and focussed the viewers on the acting and plot, rather than the visuals.
Something else I noticed throughout the film was that the camera was pretty much always hand held and therefore had varying amounts of shakiness throughout the film. It was always at least a little shaky -- not counting the dorsal establishing shots -- but more shaky during intense and dramatic moments. I think the shakiness, not only contributed to the inspiration of nerves in an audience during intense scenes, but helped us feel part of Dogville. The cinematography was casual, almost like a home-movie, so we felt attached -- rather than like audience members.